Roy Hodgson voices anti-betting stand: 'We made big strides with drugs and alcohol. Maybe gambling next'

8
Roy Hodgson voices anti-betting stand: 'We made big strides with drugs and alcohol. Maybe gambling next'

Crystal Palace boss believes betting is a stain on society on a par with drugs and alcohol and needs kicking out of the sport.

As the most recent events have shown, it's not only ordinary people who become gambling addicts, but also professional footballers at the top level: Sandro Tonali and his Italy teammates.

Hodgson told The Times: "I feel sorry for him and I feel sorry for Newcastle having to face this situation. We know gambling is a problem in our society but we don’t help in sport because we promote betting. It is a problem we should take more seriously than we have done.

"We’ve made big strides with drugs and alcohol. Maybe gambling and betting will be the next subjects we take on. Footballers do get caught up in it. Unfortunately when they do, the punishments are very strict."

Betting remains prevalent in the Premier League. The league agreed to remove gambling sponsors from the front of the matchday shorts starting from the 2025-26 campaign. However, gambling sponsorship would still be allowed anywhere else on kits, as well as on clubs' media platforms.

Author.eugeneSourceThe Times
8

Table